Interview + Scottish politics | The Guardianhttp://www.theguardian.com/society/series/interview+politics/scotland
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Johann Lamont: Facing up to Scotland's 'stark choice'http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/06/johann-lamont-facing-scotland-choice
Scotland's Labour leader wants free healthcare, not the independence debate, to dominate the political agenda<p>When Johann Lamont, Scotland's Labour leader, <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-19711805" title="">called for</a> a mature debate on the funding of Scotland's cherished public services, from free personal and nursing care to free NHS prescriptions and tuition-free universities, the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/sep/28/scottish-labour-hostility-snp" title="">outcry</a> was predictable.</p><p>She was <a href="http://www.snp.org/blog/post/2012/oct/nicola-sturgeon-defends-universal-benefits" title="">accused</a> by the SNP government of moving to destroy &quot;shared social bonds&quot;. And some Labour activists privately questioned the timing of her <a href="http://news.stv.tv/politics/191807-labour-leader-johann-lamont-demands-end-to-something-for-nothing-culture/" title="">speech</a> at the end of September, when Lamont cautioned: &quot;This is the stark choice Scotland has to face: if we wish to continue some policies as they are, they come with a cost that has to be paid for either through increased taxation or direct charges or cuts elsewhere.&quot;</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/06/johann-lamont-facing-scotland-choice">Continue reading...</a>HealthCommunitiesSocietyScottish politicsLabourPoliticsScottish independenceScotlandUK newsTue, 06 Nov 2012 14:08:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/06/johann-lamont-facing-scotland-choiceMurdo MacLeod/Murdo MacLeodJohann Lamont, Scotland's Labour leader, has been called a Blairite, but is not afraid of the socialist label. Photograph: Murdo MacLeodMurdo MacLeod/Murdo MacLeodJohann Lamont, Scotland's Labour leader, has been called a Blairite, but is not afraid of the socialist label. Photograph: Murdo MacLeodPeter Hetherington2012-11-06T14:08:00Z